Delhi 10 march 2025 : Ola Electric Mobility Ltd. is in regulatory trouble, with transport authorities across various states conducting raids, closing showrooms, seizing vehicles and sending show-cause notices due to the stores allegedly not having trade certificates.
However, only a little over 100 of the company’s roughly 3,400 showrooms (for which data is available) actually had the basic certification needed to display, sell, offer test rides on or transport unregistered two-wheelers, Bloomberg reported, citing internal documents and government warning letters.
HT.com could not independently verify the information contained in the report.
This comes after the company recently scaled up to 4,000 physical locations.
India’s Motor Vehicles Act mandates that every auto showroom, including that of two-wheelers, should have a trade certificate conspicuously displayed if it keeps unregistered vehicles.
As a result, at least six local transport officials told Bloomberg that they were probing Ola for the alleged violations. The first warning of the violations go back to at least 2023, with more recent ones coming in early March, according to the report.
Ola had also told transport authorities since at least late 2023 that its experience centres are merely for “customer engagement” and not for direct sales, according to the report.
Summary: Authorities raid Ola Electric stores, seizing assets over alleged absence of trade certificates, raising concerns about regulatory compliance, as per reports.